Mail bag lock



Jan. 15, 1935. E. E. JOY 5 MAIL BAG LOCK Filed Jan. 20, 1954 I I I Patented Jan. 15, 1935 A V UNITED'IYSTAVTES PATENT oFF cgi-j V.

' EdwardjJEIJoy, Wichita, Kans., assignor of onethird "to Peter Q. Nyce, Washington, D. 0., and I one-third to'Bobert T. Smith, Caldwell, KaIII S.

I Application Ja uary-. 0, 1934,-Serial No. 707,924

Claimst ((31.70-2) The invention relates to :mail bag locks, and In the drawing, i more particularly to anxattachment whereby an Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the assembled ordinary Government'lock may be permanently device including a standard fastener of the secured *to theswinging member of the Ihasp swinging hasp type; the swinging vmember .of 5 type fastener commonly in use in the .United the fastener being equipped with a standard 5 States Mail Service. c lock permanently butslidably connected thereto; According 'topresent standard practice the I Fig. 2 is a side view of the same,.the full linesdraw strings-or cords of the mail bags'are proindicating the :swinging member rinfithe .cord vided with fasteningdevices of the hasp, type clamping or gripping positiomand the dotted which in 'the released position maybe freely lines showing the swinging member in'th'e, re.-' 1.0.1 sli along the draw-cords of the ,mail gsack, leased position; I while in the secured position the :fastener is Fig; 3 is a top plan view showing the fastener firmly clamped to the draw cords. In this man--, in gripping position, .and the lockproper locked I ner'the mail bag may be: see ed in closed to prevent unauthorizedreleasing' of the fasten- 'DQSitiO1'L'. ingmeainfiw wAccordi'ng to. present "practice ailock separate Fig- 4 s a t p plan V W ed L W from the fastener isemployed for-retainingthe ing the fastener in gripping position-,f but the clamp or fastener in the grippin position. l proper nl k a portion f thefastener vThe standard equipmentreferred to above is beingbrokeniaway; I generally very satisfactory; in operation so far Fig. 5'isan under side ,viewshowingthelswinge '20 as securing the mail bag is "concerned; but is ing member of 'thefastener with a plate=secured I subject to the serious disadvantagethat the :lock thereto, which plate is employed for connecting frequently becomes separated from the mail the lock to the fastener, and ,w as pouch and is lost, so that the mail bag becomes Fig. 6 is an exploded view of the members useless until a newlockisobtained. 1 shown in Fig. 5. I a;

Mailbag locking means'have-been proposed "Referring to the drawing in'detail, A desigwhich include a lock forming an integral part hates the draw strings. of a standard mail bag of a mail bagfastener, but such" locking means and. B designates a fastening means :of-the are in general, complicatedend involve a de-. w n n hasp type which now forms part of parture from standard mail service equipment; the standard Government equipment. "Theyfas- 30 According to:my inventionthe standard "U. S. tening means includesarelatively fixed portion mail; bag fastener -may be employed together X 'which may be clamped to the cords and a with the standard US. mail lock, the improverelatively swinging portion Y. The lock proper ment residing-.in-the permanent attachmentof C, whichsmaybe standard Government equip- 5 the lock to the swinging member of the standment, is permanently connected to the swinging ard hasp fastener. V 1 I member Y of the fastener 13 in such a manner Breferably the improved-attachment comprises as to permit limited lengthwise movement when platewhich ispermanently secured as by elec- Iunlocked' I trical spot welding or the like to one. faceof the The fixed portionof the fastener B includes 0 Government lock, the plate being provided with a base plate 10 provided with downwardly and 40 ineans forpermanentlattachment to theswingmwjaridlyturned flanges 11, which are adapted ing member vof the standard cord gripping fa sto receive a suitable identification Itag (not teners, n such a manner as to permit .a limited shown) in accordance with the usual practice.

sliding movement of the lock uponsaid swinging The numeral 12 indicates acord'guide provided member; until the key is turned in the lock. with .a' partition 13 dividing the same. into two 45 When the device is locked the swinging member sections to separate the draw cords. Oneend is secured in fixed relation totheother member of the cord guideis higher than the other; "A of the fastener and the device asa whole is 'resecond cordxguide 14 issecured at the .otherend tained in gripping "position upon the draw cords of the base plate. Between the cord guides 12 until the key is again turned, enabling the and 14am upright plate or tongue-15 is secured 50 swinging member to be again released. as by welding 'or the like to the base plate." The The invention .will be more readilyunderstood upright plate 15 is provided with a reduced end by reference to the accompanying drawing in portionv 16, which projects into the larger end which is shown an illustrative embodiment of of the cord guide '1 2, the top of, which'is slotted the invention.

. to: receive the end 16." Beneathntheprojection 16 is an open space 17 within which one end of the swinging hasp member Y is movable. The

upright plate 15 is provided with lateral projecand close the mouth of the bag. When the bag is to be opened the fastener will be "slid away from the bag in the usual manner. 1'

The relatively swinging member Y of the fastener comprises a plate-like lever arm 21- including a flat portion elongated slot 23 adapted to pass over the vertical plate 15. The flat portion of the swinging member is cut away on opposite sides, as at'24, 24, forming shoulders 25, 25 and 26, 26 at the ends of the cut-away portions. The elongated slot 23 mergesaat one end into an enlarged por-. tion '2'7= of rectangular shape. The end ofthe swinging member. opposite the flattened portion is bent; downwardly at 28 and upwardly at. 29, and terminates in a reduced tongue 30 adapted to fitinto the enlarged open end of the cord guide or keeper 12. v

taching .plate The ham) or swinging memberv Y is permanently but swingingly attached to the fixed mem-' ber'X. The slots 23 and-Z'lpermitthe swingingmember to be slipped over the nose 6 of the upright plate, which is afterward permanently secured to the base plate as previously described. When the swinging member isin the raised or dotted line position, the cords A, A pass loosely over the end 30 of theswinging member and through the slot 27 on opposite sides of the upright plate 15, thence rearwardly through guide 14. When the swinging member is lowered, the cordsare clamped by the tongue 30 againstthe top of the guide 12, leverage being obtained by engagementof the surface'3l at one edge of the slot 2'7 against the rollers 19, 19. The fastening member above described may be and preferably is standard Government equipment.

According to the present invention 'a lock C maybe spot weldedor otherwise permanently secured to an versed in Figs. 5 and 6. At the edges the atis provided with downwardly and inwardly turned flanges 33 adapted to slide upon the enlarged rear portion 34 of the swinging member of the fastener Bf The attaching plate is also provided with a slot 35 which is'adapte'd to register with the slot 23 in the swinging memher. The sliding movement of the plate with the attached lock is limited 'by inturned lugs 36, which are adapted to engage shoulders 25 of slot 24 at one position and shoulders "26 at the other limit of movement' The amount of this movement will be dependent upon the length of the slots 24 and the size of the lugs 36, which, as will .be notedymay be formed by cutting away portions at the ends: of flanges 33 and bending the same toward the body of the attaching plate. Any suitablevmeans may be. employed for permanently securing the lock to the attaching plate 32. Spot weldingmay be employed, ora steel band may be used for connecting the plate and lock, such band being suitably secured both to the lock andthe plate.

by a key inserted in the plate 15.

the upright plate 22 at one end having attaching plate 32, shown. 'r'e The look, when opened, is adapted to be snapped fast by moving the lock and the plate to which it is attached a short distance in the direction of the arrow from the position shown in Fig. 4 to that indicated in Fig. 3, in which position the lock will be retained until released in the key hole' 36. The lock employed is preferably the standard lock employed in the Un'ted States Mail Service, the operation of which is well known and need not be described in detail. In the illustrative embodiment herein shown a key-actuated member 3'7 is pivoted at 38 to the housing of the lock and is provided with a key-engaging portion 39 and an arm 40 adapted to engage the hole 20 A cam surface 41 on the memher 3''! is adapted to be engaged by one end of in the direction of the arrow (Fig-4) in snapping the same shut. A suitable spring 42 may .be employedto hold the key-actuated member 37' in the desired position. The parts described are diagrammatic in character and are intended to illustrate an operative structure, but it will be understood that a standard Government lock is intended to be employed.v The automatic snapping shut of the lock is permitted by reason of the limited movement of the attaching plate 32 onwhich 'the'lock is carried. J Since this plate is permanently'secured to the swinging portion of the fastener membeifi the lock cannot be separated from the fastenerand become lost. I: 'The present device possesses the important merit in that it does not require material modi-i flcation of existingequipment. is cheap to apply and its operation is extremely efficient.

While the device has been described with particular reference to amail bag lock, it will be The attachment 15 when the lock is moved j looks of otherkinds." 7

said attaching means comprising a 'plate to which the lock is rigidly and permanently secured, and having flanges slidingly fitting over a portion of said bag fastener-,1 together with stops for limiting the sliding movement, said plate being centrally slotted to permit passage of said staple.

2. The combination with the swinging hasp of a fastening member having a central slot adapted to pass over :a flxed staple carried by' the fastening member, and having recess'diporthe slot parallel there-f tions at opposite sides of to and terminating in'shoulders short of the ends thereof; of a lock' having means adapted to engage said staple when in locked position, and means for permanently securing the lock to said hasp, comprising a plate towhich the lock is secured and adapted for limited sliding movement upon the hasp member, said securing means having a central slot corresponding with the slot of said hasp, and having guide flanges slidingly fltting over the edges of said hasp, together with stops for limiting the sliding movement of said carrier plate by engagement with the shoulders at opposite ends of the recessed portions of said hasp. l

' ing movement of 3. The combination with a movable plate-like hasp member of a fastening device having a central slot adapted to pass over a fixed staple carried by the fastening device, and having cut-away portions at the sides thereof parallel to but terminating in shoulders intermediate the ends of the slot, of a lock carrier plate permanently mounted for limited sliding movement on said hasp member, said carrier plate having a central slot corresponding with the slot of said hasp member and having stops for limiting the slidsaid carrier plate in either direction by engagement with the shoulders at opposite ends of the cut-away portions of said hasp.

4. In combination with a mail bag fastener including a member adapted to slide upon the draw cords of the mail bag, said member carrying a staple, a swinging member adapted to clamp the cords within the fastener and having a slotted portion to pass over said staple; a lock for engagement with said staple carrying a plate permanently secured to the swinging clamping member but having limited sliding movement with reference thereto when in unlocked position, said plate being centrally slotted to permit passage to and from the staple.

5. In combination, ing a staple, a mail bag lock for engagement with said staple, and an attaching plate permanently securing the lock to a portion of said fastener, said attaching plate having a slot to permit passage of said staple and to permit sliding movement of the look when snapping the same shut.

EDWARD E. JOY.

a mail bag fastener carry-' 

